Photocurrent in superconducting YBa2Cu3O7−x films induced by an infrared free electron laser

Since the discovery of high-temperature cuprate superconductors, there has been much intensive study about the mechanism of them. However, identifying the dynamical mechanism behind them remains one of the great challenges in condensed matter physics. We investigated the high-temperature YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x superconducting films by using a free electron laser (FEL). The method is a type of photoelectron spectroscopy called a free electron laser internal photoemission. The spectrum of the photocurrent induced by FEL was measured in the case of 15 K and 100 K. We estimated the superconductive gap energy of YBa₂Cu₃O_7−x by comparing the photocurrent spectrum of the superconductive state with that of non-superconductive state.